Presentations and Storytelling

      Presentations are one of the oldest forms of communication. Ancient storytellers used words and actions to tell stories that riveted their listeners and expanded their imaginations. 

      Presentations are like stories and, through them, people learn something they did not know before. Storytelling is not only a means of entertainment but also a way to convey information, messages and values and create a shared understanding of the world. In his study of “The Narrative Construction of Reality”, Bruner (1981) explains the role that storytelling has in the perception that individuals have of the world that surrounds them. Humans organize their experience and memory in the form of narrative, using stories, myths, excuses, and more. 

Narrative, indeed, is a version of reality whose acceptability is governed by convention and necessity, rather than empirical verification and logical reasoning. In this perspective, narrative and storytelling play a crucial role in brand management and marketing. Joshua Glenn and Rob Walker demonstrated that stories are not only pleasant to hear, but that they can also add financial value if they are connected to a product. They conducted a literary and anthropological experiment to demonstrate the effect of narrative on any given object’s subjective value.

Moreover, Dias and Cavalheiro (2021) have emphasised how important storytelling is in generating brand love by adding emotional value to products and to create identification among consumers. By generating customer identification with the product, storytelling has been identified as a useful tool in brand management and marketing.

The benefits of storytelling have been studied and demonstrated in various disciplines, whether it be psychology, marketing, or organisational management, thanks to its ability to shape perceptions, convey information and create shared understanding. The numerous findings made underline the importance of storytelling as a communication tool and in influencing beliefs through rhetoric and emotions.

Rhetoric is nonetheless a type of communication that is intended to persuade. The main source to understand rhetoric is Aristotle, who believed that rhetoric is “the art of seeing the available means of persuasion”. 

In summary, storytelling is not a mere means to convey a message, but it is also a way to engage listeners. Storytellers, then, have the duty to shape information and find details because, depending on their skills, the result of their presentation can be fascinating for the audience or flat.

The importance of captivating the audience

Public speaking affects every aspect of communication. It refers to the ability of a person to get across ideas and to inform and persuade their audience. Depending on the abilities of the storyteller, the audience will be interested in the presentation or will not pay attention to the message that someone wants to promote.

That is why captivating the audience forms the foundation of effective communication and successful content management, since when someone is able to capture the audience’s attention, they create a pathway for their message, point, ideas, story, or any content to be heard and understood (Sela 2023). Captivating an audience means to seize their interest and attention in order to keep them fully engaged towards the message that is being presented. The storyteller evokes a sense of fascination and curiosity which will bring them to focus on and actively interact with the presented discourse. This process transforms a passive group of individuals into active participants with a genuine interest into the content, creating a meaningful connection that enhances the impact of communication. 

The task is to interact with the audience to sustain their interest and involvement in the discourse (see Module 4, section 2.4.2, “The role of Collaborative Design”, to understand the importance of having the audience co-developing the experience through their interest and active participation). This will enable the storyteller to efficiently communicate their message, because a captivated audience is more likely to be receptive and responsive, leading to a better performance.

Understanding the audience is a crucial aspect of captivating them effectively. It makes the storyteller enter in contact with preferences and expectations, which will allow the creation of personalised experiences that address the audience’s needs and interests. When someone is presenting an experience, the main goal is to make listeners understand and respond favourably to what they are talking about. 

The key characteristic of every presentation is obviously the unequal distribution of speaking time between storyteller and audience.  Since there is limited communication between the two, it is fundamental to present the content in a clear but catchy way. Therefore, when planning a presentation, the tip is to learn about who the audience is. The storyteller is not only speaking to the audience, but also speaking for them. 

This is why analysing the audience is a key element of the communication process in any field. A correct evaluation increases the chances of being heard and, more importantly, being understood. Audience analysis is the process of gathering and interpreting information about the recipients of the presentation that is going to be made. First, it is fundamental for the speaker to determine what the audience already knows about the topic, and what they need to know (Callison and Lamb, 2004). Then, the depth of this study depends on the size of the audience group and on the method in which the presentation is delivered. Storytellers can use different methods to become familiar with the background and attitudes of their listeners. It is worth it to remember that the more information one collects, the more they can adapt the message. Answers about gender, religion or interests can be helpful for the storyteller to lead a more effective communication (Burton & Tucker, 2021).

Identifying your audience

“Audience analysis” dates back at least to Aristotle, whose lengthy discussions of “the various types of human character in relation to the emotions and moral states to the several periods of life and the varieties of fortune” (Cooper 1932) provides the foundation for many, though not all, contemporary systems of audience analysis. Aristotle’s discussion is essentially pragmatic, his focus on persuasion and on the behaviour of “the group” strongly influenced subsequent research on audience analysis in presentation communication.

In Donald Bryant’s influential article of 1953, the author argues that the modern enlightenment has produced no new method of analysing an audience which can replace Aristotle. His continuing influence can be seen in the tendency of many contemporary authors of presentation texts to emphasise the analysis of demographic variables such as gender, race, and beliefs, though supplementing their discussions with information derived from empirical studies (Ede, 1984). 

It is important to have an accurate assessment of the audience. However, although there is a general consensus about the importance of Aristotle’s studies on the matter of rhetoric, there is no consensus about who the audience precisely is (Clayton, 2004). When someone is communicating a message, they need to know who the people they are talking with are, including their background and attitudes. The first step is then to distinguish between the primary and secondary audience. 

The Oxford Dictionary defines the “primary audience” as the “targeted group for some form of mediated communication, such as for an advertising campaign or a television channel, defined by demographics and/or lifestyle”. Indeed, the primary audience is the intended group of people that a person has in mind when deciding to share a content. Understanding who makes up the target audience will allow the storyteller to carefully plan their discourse and adapt what they are saying to the background of their listeners. When communicating with an audience, the storyteller is normally trying to achieve one or more of the three following goals:

• Persuade: convince the audience to take a precise action;
• Inform: raise awareness about a topic or an issue;
• Entertain: capture their attention (Dingwall, Labrie, McLennon & Underwood, n. d.).

      For effective messaging through narratives, it is essential to identify the target audience, and according to this, crafting the speech (Rrustemi, 2020).

However, when analysing an audience, one must also consider the “secondary audience”. These are the people who could reasonably enter in contact with the message. A holistic approach is essential in this case, as it allows to increase the number of people reached, which thereby increases the impact of the message delivered.

When delivering a presentation in front of a group of people, it is important to know about the composition of the group. Besides learning about the major demographics of the audience, such as general age, gender, religion, the storyteller must learn about the values and beliefs of the members of the audience, and accordingly plan their speech (Lee, 2003). Being able to understand at first sight the composition of the audience, their background, and their expectations, will lead to a more inclusive approach, avoiding the risk of alienating or excluding part of the group (Rrustemi, 2020). This will result in two practical benefits: preventing the storyteller from saying the wrong thing, such as jokes which might offend someone, and helping them to speak in a language that the audience will understand, about things that really interest them.

It has been scientifically recognised that the first impression one has of a person, or an event, remains long in people’s minds. This is why starting a presentation in a catching and intriguing way can be crucial during a presentation. For this reason, various presenters often start their presentations using what are defined as “hooks”. A hook message is the attention-grabbing element whose purpose is to captivate the audience’s curiosity, compelling them to continue listening to the rest of the presentation (Sabada, 2023).

A powerful opening line sets the mood and the tone of a presentation. It is what grips the attention towards the topic. A storyteller can choose among different types of hooks while at the beginning of their presentation to catch attention, according to what best fits their personal style. Opening lines can include different methods, as it is shown by the communication expert Hrideep Barot:

• The power of imagination: it can work extremely well to captivate the audience. It brings the listener to an imaginary land which can be used by the storyteller to prove their point. A key tool when it comes to imagination is the “detail”, because the audience needs to feel in the same exact circumstance in which the storyteller was.
• Humour: getting a laugh in the first minutes of a presentation is a great way to make the audience like who is speaking. And if a person likes the one who is talking, they will easily believe in the same ideas. As stated by the Stanford Graduate School of Business professor Jennifer Aaker, “showing your sense of humour can make your peers and your friends attribute more perceptions of confidence and status to us while cultivating a sense of trust” (Abrahams, 2020). This also means that the joke should suit the natural personality of the presenter, because if it looks forced it won’t reach the desired scope.
• Provocative statements: they create among the listeners a deep interest in hearing what still has to come. It intrigues the audience and will make them excited about how the storyteller will explain facts.
• Silence: completely opposite to a killer opening sentence, but equally useful. The point of having a strong beginning is that it brings all the attention on who is talking. The same thing can be obtained by getting on the stage and staying silent for a few seconds looking at the crowd while the spotlight is on the storyteller.
• Storytelling: Steve Jobs once said that “the most powerful person in the world is the storyteller”. Starting a presentation with a story is a great way to grab attention, since it creates curiosity around the end of the tale.

      It is said that “well begun is half done”, and using one of these methods can help the storyteller establish a connection with the listeners from the first moment.

An engaging start can be very useful, but it is not enough; it is up to the storyteller to keep the audience’s attention once they have earned it. Maintaining the engagement is important since it denotes an active and intentional orientation towards what is being heard. The audience invests time, attention, and emotions to internalise the spread message (Lehmann, Lalmas, Elad & Dupret, 2012). 

There is no agreement in academic literature or professional journalism practice on what engagement actually entails and how it should be measured (Broesma, 2019), but there is a common opinion among scholars about the importance of engagement and interaction with the audience for the effective communication of the spread message.

Besides making a talk memorable, interaction produces a connection between storyteller and listeners (Barot, 2023). However, since not all audiences are the same, it is up to the storyteller to learn how to interact with that precise public. Fortunately, there are some general tips that can be used to have a major impact on those listening (Van Den Belt, 2021):

• Expert panel: inviting an expert can be a great way of piquing the audience’s interest. Guest speakers give a break from having to listen to the same person for long stretches of time, and also make it a more educational experience. It is fundamental here to be sure that the speakers are relevant to and well-versed with the topic at hand.
• Playing a quiz: if one wishes to quiz the audience to get an idea of how familiar they are with the topic, they can set the quiz at the beginning of their presentation. This can be a great bonding experience for them. Alternatively, the storyteller could add the quiz somewhere in the middle of the presentation, when they feel like the audience’s attention has begun wandering to other things.
• Getting people to move: having to sit still for prolonged periods of time is a doorway to boredom. And boredom is what makes the audience tune out of a presentation. So, if the storyteller feels like they have spoken for a long time without giving their audience a break, the solution is getting them to move. They could do this by making them play a game. Not only will it increase the overall energy level in the room, but it might also successfully draw out that sought-after burst of laughter from the audience.
• Giveaways and gifts: they are a great way to increase the audience’s excitement levels. After all, who doesn’t like to win something? You could have a prize for a game; or simply give a small token of your appreciation to the audience at the end of your speech (Barot, 2023).
• Visuals and media: “People who know what they are talking about don’t need PowerPoint” (Jobs, 1997). But sometimes, being a good storyteller may not be enough when it comes to keeping an audience involved for a long span of time. This is why the best presentations often include a mix of supporting visuals. Presentation aids can be very effective when it comes to entertaining and keeping people’s attention. Which do people remember longer, an image or a description of that image? The answer is pretty obvious. People live in a visual society. Screens of televisions or phones are everywhere in houses, shops, bars. People tend to believe what they see more than what they hear, even if images can be manipulated. Using images or videos during a presentation to increase the audience’s interest might sound like overused advice, but there is a reason for it. Videos are an excellent and easy way to add some creativity to the presentation. Visuals provide a reprieve from the monotony of a slideshow.

      These tools are all very effective when it comes to gain attention, if one knows how to use them in the most efficient way, otherwise the risk is to fall into the obvious and boredom, which are things to absolutely avoid. The best way to keep the audience engaged is to adapt these tools to the different approaches to storytelling (see Module 1, section 8.1, “Techniques for Effective Storytelling”, to understand the various strategies and approaches that enhance the impact and engagement of narratives).

Engagement challenges

      It happened to all at least once in their lives to attend a conference or a meeting and not to pay the slightest attention to who is talking. This is why one of the biggest fears that a storyteller may have to face before starting, or during a speech, is to watch their audience and see that their attention has completely faded away (Barot, 2023).

      In this case, it is not the audience, but the storyteller’s fault, since they had the responsibility to entertain their listeners and make their speech not only informative, but also engaging (Barot, 2019).

      In this regard, the motivational speaker, Dorothy Leeds (2003), during her career analysing presentations, has recognized a “pattern” of flaws that led to ineffective communication. She discovered that in all these presentations there were six major speaking faults which occurred over and over again, even among experienced storytellers:

• An unclear purpose: despite the willingness of the storyteller, they are not able to motivate the audience.
• Lack of organisation: the presentation has no structure and does not flow logically from one point to another.
• Too much information: overloading the audience with technical details, most of them unnecessary.
• No support for their ideas: compelling arguments that are not supported by tools and aids.
• Monotonous voice: the storyteller believes in their subject and of course is excited, but they are not able to express it.

     These may appear to be irrelevant, but they also risk losing interest to the public, undermining the whole presentation. When this happens, when the audience’s attention is fading away, most presenters tend to hyper focus on the bad, instead of thinking about how to recover the situation.

     Instead of focusing on those who are not paying attention, it is very useful in this case to keep their eyes on the ones that are, involving them further. 

     Another good strategy is encouraging them to participate, and the storyteller can do this in many ways. They can directly ask someone to answer a question, or if they prefer a more roundabout way, they could ask it in general, so that everyone feels more involved.
If none of the strategies used worked, and the presentation did not go as expected, the only thing the storyteller can do is to learn from their errors. Listing what they think went wrong and what they could do differently to improve the speech can prepare them for any future instance when their audience might not be as responsive as they hoped it to be (Leeds, 2003).

Defining Emotional Intelligence

     Emotions play a crucial role in audience engagement across various contexts, including public speaking, leadership, and interpersonal communication. Engaging emotions in a speech is a powerful way to connect with their audience on a deeper level, making the message more memorable and impactful. In this regard, Emotional Intelligence has an essential role (Morgan, 2017).

      In the past decade, Emotional Intelligence (EI) has generated an enormous amount of interest both within and outside the field of psychology. Emotional Intelligence brings together the fields of emotions and intelligence by viewing emotions as useful sources of information that help one to make sense of and navigate the social environment (Salovey and Grewal, 2005).

      Emotions are involved in everything people do: every action, decision, and judgement. Emotionally intelligent people recognise this and use their thinking to manage their emotions rather than being managed by them. This is why over the last two decades the concept of Emotional Intelligence has become a very important indicator of a person’s knowledge, skills, and abilities in the workplace, school, and personal life (Tripathy,2018).

      Determining what emotional intelligence precisely is can be difficult since there are a lot of arguments about its definition. As the field is growing so rapidly, researchers are constantly amending their own visions. Here are some definitions:

• According to Six Seconds Team (1997) EI is: “the capacity to create optimal results in your relationships with yourself and others”.
• According to Reuven Bar-On (2006), emotional intelligence is: “an array of non-cognitive (emotional and social) capabilities, competencies and skills that influence one’s ability to succeed in coping with environmental demands and pressures”. 
• According to Travis Bradberry and Jean Greaves (2009) “EI is your ability to recognise and understand emotions in yourself and others, and your ability to use this awareness to manage your behaviour and relationships”.
• According to Chris Golis (2019) “EQ (emotional intelligence quotient) is achieving self and social mastery by being smart with core emotions”.

       Even if these definitions are all accepted by the scientific community, the most valid one was given by Mayer, Salovey and Caruso, who proposed a definition of EI as “the ability to monitor one’s own and others’ feelings, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one’s thinking and action”.

      Later this definition was refined and broken down into four proposed abilities that are distinct yet related: 

1. “Perceiving emotions” is the ability to detect and decipher emotions in faces, pictures, voices. It represents the most basic aspect of EI.
2. “Using emotions” is the ability to harness emotions to facilitate various cognitive activities, such as thinking and problem solving.
3. “Understanding emotions” is the ability to comprehend emotional language and to appreciate complicated relationships among emotions. Furthermore, it includes the ability to recognise and describe how emotions evolve over time.
4. “Managing emotions”, consists in the ability to regulate emotions. This branch also includes the ability to manage the emotions of others (Mayer, Salovey, Caruso, Lopes, 2003).

Intrinsic to the four-branch model of EI is the idea that these skills cannot exist outside of the social context in which they operate.

      Emotional Intelligence is indeed a set of skills and abilities that involve the recognition, understanding, management, and effective use of one’s own emotions and the emotions of others. It encompasses a range of interpersonal and intrapersonal competencies that contribute to how individuals perceive, understand, navigate, and manage emotions, both in themselves and in others (Mosto, 2022).

Empathy and understanding

      Starting from the previous categorization of EI, Daniel Goleman then developed an articulated model, identifying five key components of emotional intelligence:

• Self-awareness: the ability to recognise and understand one’s own emotions, including the impact these emotions can have on behaviour, thoughts, and decision-making.
• Self-regulation: the capacity to manage and control one’s own emotions, impulses, and reactions. This involves staying calm under pressure, being adaptable, and avoiding impulsive behaviours.
• Motivation: the drive to pursue goals with energy and persistence, even in the face of setbacks. This aspect of emotional intelligence involves a passion for work, a desire for achievement, and the ability to stay optimistic.
• Empathy: the skill of understanding and sharing the feelings of others. Empathy involves being attuned to the emotions of those around you, recognising their perspectives, and responding with sensitivity.
• Social skills: the ability to navigate social situations effectively, build and maintain positive relationships, communicate persuasively, and work collaboratively. This aspect of emotional intelligence includes skills such as communication, conflict resolution, and teamwork (Goleman, 1995).

High emotional intelligence is associated with a range of positive outcomes in personal and professional life, including improved communication, stronger interpersonal relationships, better conflict resolution, effective leadership, and enhanced overall well-being.

Dealing with public speaking, Emotional Intelligence can be used to foster audience’s active participation, getting in tune with them, helping to identify their values, and thus aligning the message to the target group.

Some of the good storytelling practices are presented below. For more examples, please click on the link https://enforce-project.eu/interactive-map. To best understand how the concepts explained in this module are applied in order to captivate the audience, it is suggested that learners access the good practice directly from its original source.

Discovering Mullerthal

Photo 1. Mullerthal – Schéissendëmpel waterfall

A father and his son set off on an exciting journey to prepare for a greater travelling event. Their destination? The picturesque Mullerthal, often referred to as “Luxembourg’s Little Switzerland” due to its breathtaking beauty.

On their hike, they marvelled at the lush greenery and incredible rock formations. Every step was full of new surprises and created special memories together. They laughed, shared stories and felt a strong connection on their journey.

Their narrative was not only about the beauty of nature, but also about their own adventure. They talked about the tranquillity between high rocks and ancient trees and the fun they had along the way.

With their story, they invited everyone — locals and tourists alike — to explore the natural wonders of Mullerthal, as they wanted others to see the diverse landscapes waiting to be discovered.

Original source (available in English, French, German, and Dutch): https://www.visitluxembourg.com/get-to-know-luxembourg/adventure-on-the-mullerthal-trail 

Identifying your audience

The presentation of the Mullerthal trail is addressed to tourists and locals of all ages. As the protagonists of this story are a father and his son, families feel involved firsthand, so they can be defined as the primary audience of the story. However, they are not the only ones, as the main audience also includes hikers from all around the world, adventurers, scouts, and everyone fascinated by natural landscapes, or searching for a sense of calm and freedom.

The power of a strong beginning

The powerful beginning of this story consists in the fascinating opening of the article which, by using the power of imagination, immerse the listener into the breathtaking landscapes of the Mullerthal. The numerous details on the experience, qualified and emphasized by highly descriptive adjectives, fascinate the readers right from the first few lines.

Maintaining the engagement

A series of pictures throughout the article helps to maintain the readers’ engagement, but also the testimonials from other visitors to the Mullerthal, scattered throughout the text, which help readers to change perspective and find new profiles to identify themselves with.

Engaging emotions

Different readers can differently connect with the story and their protagonists through different types of emotions. Parents empathize with the powerful bonding experience between a father and his son, hikers get excited by the adventurous depictions of the trail, nature-lovers get fascinated by the enchanting description of the landscapes.